Set your story during a complete city or nation-wide blackout.

Posted in Thriller and Suspense on Feb 3, 2023

Submissions are closed

Sorry, we are not accepting submissions for this prompt as it is not part of an active contest. Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy Prompts account.

Or create a new Reedsy account:

Why not check out our active contest?

✍️ 52 stories

“The Quake” by Brandon Mackenzie

Submitted to Contest #184

Part One: The Date I woke up sweating in my soaked bedsheets. I stepped out of bed and poured a glass of cold milk from the fridge. I saw the time on the stove saying 2:00 AM. After I gulped it down, I fell asleep in less than an hour. I snuggled up to my dog, Waffles and her nose was on my cheek. Her four legs were sticking straight up like she was living the dream of a lazy dog. She’s a mini Australian labradoodle and she’s a little shit sometimes. I am sick of lying still in the dark, waiting for sleep to steal over me in the early hours ...

3 comments 3

Read story

“Black Out” by K Dutta

Submitted to Contest #184

The lights went out just like I knew they would. We had a howler of a storm out there, and I was prepared. I lit an oil lamp with a fresh wick I had installed hours before. I had 3 bottles of lamp oil, 3 oil lamps, and 5 wicks. Which should last me a week. If I'm sparing. Hopefully, I won't be waiting that long, but if so, I'm prepared. I have a glorious wood stove. I will have to be sparing with that, too. By the time I got to the hardware store, they only had 3 cases of bio bricks left. That leaves me with 9 bricks. That'll last me 5 days ...

1 comment 1

Read story

“Another Shot in The Dark” by David B Fraser

Submitted to Contest #184

“You should have shot him.” I heard the man say. I was lying in my bed with my window open. I had a third story walk-up apartment and he had the house behind me, and we had never met, and I could hear him in his backyard with whoever his acquaintances were. “No, you’re supposed to shoot him.” He repeated. He had some European accent that I didn’t have the ear to pinpoint. “Maybe he kill you.” It was the second night of the east coast blackout, August 15, 2003. I couldn’t sleep because...

1 comment 1

Read story

“The Shadows Before Sunrise” by Clare McCarthy

Submitted to Contest #184

“I’ve always found the lights to be overwhelming.” “They always seem to be shining into my eyes, blinding my vision and reasoning. The lights are probably my biggest enemy, the obstacle on my path to success. I don’t see why we need the light anyways.” “On the other hand, the darkness lets me feel free. Void of any and all color, it feels as if real life… isn’t real. In the darkness, I can feel my consciousness floating into the air, and time seems to stop. I feel as if I can do anything if I don’t have to see the world around me. I wonder w...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Annexation Night” by J.C. Vayda

Submitted to Contest #184

It was New Year’s Eve, and the night was clear of clouds, letting the stars and moon light up the sky and the earth below. The year was 2023, and the clock read 11:55 pm. Everyone began to gather in the living room. The television was on, broadcasting the New York City ball drop. All the Pop bands had played their set and all the most famous celebrities of the time made their appearance. Champagne bottles began getting passed around. They were bought illegally. Jack had a fake ID, which made him probably the coolest guy at the party.Zach, Ma...

1 comment 1

Read story

“THE GAME” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #184

This was not going good. I got the call to come ASAP to meet up with the gang or better known as the tokens of monopoly. And by that, I mean the game MONOPOLY. It seems that someone had taken the keys to the grid and put them in the PURSE. The city built inside the city had gone dark. We were now on the move as we recently became financially solvent players. The time was here to force our hand on the ones who were throwing the dice on their terms and not playing by the rules. It began a few years ago when everyone in the city saw a rise in q...

0 comments 0

Read story

“The Rebel and The Disc Jockey” by Skott's Ghost

Submitted to Contest #184

The principle marches into her office where Vivi is forced to remain seated after being sent for dismembering a classmate with a shovel for terrorizing a foreign exchange student with a dissected frog."So," the principle starts, pacing back and forth next to Vivi, "why do you think you're in here?""because you love me? shit I-D-K!" Vivi responds sarcastically after an unnecessarily long, deep sigh.The principle slams her fist down on her desk in a sudden fit of rage over Vivi's behavior."No, smartass! You're being expelled and arrested for h...

0 comments 0

Read story

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with someone saying “Houston, we have a problem.”

Dialogue – 41 stories

Write a story about a character who is experiencing glitches in their reality.

Mystery – 82 stories

Write about someone who has chosen to disconnect and live an analog life.

Character – 36 stories

Write a story where a character has to decide whether to press the button or not.

Science Fiction – 70 stories

Contest #184

Enter our weekly contest!

This week's theme: Technical Difficulties

$250

Prize money

281

Contest entries

121

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Feb 10, 2023 EST

Won by Michelle Oliver 🏆

Title: All the Lonely People

View details

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

We'll send you 5 prompts each week. Respond with your short story and you could win $250!

Menu

CONNECT

BLOG

APPS

TOOLS

ABOUT

Set your story during a complete city or nation-wide blackout.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 52 stories

“The Quake” by Brandon Mackenzie

“Black Out” by K Dutta

“Another Shot in The Dark” by David B Fraser

“The Shadows Before Sunrise” by Clare McCarthy

“Annexation Night” by J.C. Vayda

“THE GAME” by Debbie Curtin

“The Rebel and The Disc Jockey” by Skott's Ghost

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with someone saying “Houston, we have a problem.”

Write a story about a character who is experiencing glitches in their reality.

Write about someone who has chosen to disconnect and live an analog life.

Write a story where a character has to decide whether to press the button or not.

Contest #184

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

281

Contest entries

121

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: